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Rehoming Your Pet

We understand that circumstances in life can sometimes mean that you may find yourself in need of finding a new home for your pet or the pet of a loved one. If you're in this situation, we'd like to encourage you to try and re-home your pet directly rather than bringing them to the shelter. This is often a much more calming and comforting way for ownership to change hands for the pet, and means that you are able to be fully involved in the process. We're here to help and can recommend some key tips and tricks to make the process go quite smoothly. If however, you feel you've exhausted all your options, know that you can of course contact us to discuss your choices.

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If you are in need of food or supplies for your pet please contact us so we can assist you!

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Experiencing Behavioral Problems?

Cats

If you are experiencing a behavioral problem with your cat, please contact your veterinarian immediately to rule out any medical issues as the cause. If your veterinarian determines the problem is not health related, contact Cats International at 262-375-8852 (Milwaukee,Wisconsin) or www.catsinternational.org. They provide free feline behavior advice and have an incredible success rate!

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Dogs

If you are experiencing a behavioral problem with your dog, please contact your veterinarian immediately to rule out any medical issues as the cause. If your veterinarian determines the problem is not health related, contact a trainer about a behavioral consultation.

Need help finding a trainer? Click Here

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Getting the Word Out

There are a few options for posting your pet on websites that specialize in rehoming and offer specific platforms for simple, safe and free ways of transferring ownership to a new owner.

 

NFSAW Courtesy Post

NFSAW will make a courtesy post on our Facebook page  and website to help you rehome your pet. We will check in every two weeks to see if the pet has been rehomed and discuss other options. Rehoming posts will be taken down/stopped if we do not hear back from you within one month of the request. ​

In order to make a courtesy post we need the following: 

Rehoming is your responsibility and we will post your contact information for a potential owner to contact you directly.

 

Rehome by Adopt-a-Pet.com

To list your pet on this site, visit rehome.adoptapet.com and create a profile. Not only does this site get seen by thousands of potential pet parents in your area, it also allows you to review applications for your pet and set up meetings with potential new families.

 

Home to Home

Home to Home is another platform that allows you to post your pet -- but you need a local shelter to be associated with the profile you create. Visit home-home.org and search by zip code to find a shelter near you  -- and if your local shelter is not participating you can request that Home to Home onboard them so you can get started. 

 

Rescue Me!

Rescue Me is a site that can help reach community members within 2 hours of you sharing your pets information.  They email adopters in your area based on the breed of your pet and interest on their mailing list. Visit rescueme.org

 

Using Social Media

Once you post your pet on a rehoming site, you can then share the link to their profile on social media to help circulate it and get more eyes on them.

When you post on any social network to share your pet, try these quick tips for success:

  • Tell a story. Sometimes a heartfelt story about your pet and your search for a safe place for them to land can help people understand your choice to rehome and help get the post shared to other potential adopters. 

  • Be descriptive.  Use the same advice as you did when writing your pet description - be positive, share important basics (weight/size, age, preferences, etc).

  • Choose your cutest / favorite photo. Grab attention and help show off their best si
    de! Make sure it's a recent photo and accurately represents them

  • Include your contact info or ask people to DM you. If there's a deadline for seeking the new home or other critical info share that too.

 

Community Connections

Consider other off-line connections you have to help get the word out. You never know who might be looking for a pet! 

  • Friends

  • Family members

  • Neighbors

  • Co-workers

  • Community contacts

  • School

  • Church, Synagogue, House of worship

  • Membership groups

  • Community-based organizations


You can also make flyers -- using the same basic information you used in your online pet description and a few great photos -- and post them in different locations around your community:

  • Veterinarian

  • Pet supply store

  • Feed Store

  • Coffee Shop

  • Restaurants / Diners

  • Work, school or other community bulletin boards

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Surrendering Your Pet

IMPORTANT:  Please do not bring your pet to the shelter prior to completing the following steps.  We often do not have space available immediately. The State of Connecticut considers pets as personal property; thus, they may not be left at our shelter without proper transfer of the legal rights to the animal.

  1. Complete our cat surrender form or dog surrender form. 

  2. Provide information for a courtesy post as described above under "NFSAW Courtesy Post".

  3. Provide copies of current vet records.

  4. Once submitted, we will contact you to schedule a surrender appointment.

 

Completing the surrender form does not guarantee that we will take the pet you wish to surrender; it only assures that we will consider your application if we have space.

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Please note: We will not intake an aggressive dog and/or a dog with a bite history.  

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If pet does not pass our temperament test, we cannot intake him/her, we will try to offer you other options.

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Animal Surrender Fees

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  • NOT spayed/neutered and not up to date on vaccines- $150

  • Spayed/neutered and NOT up to date on vaccines- $90

  • Spayed/neutered and up to date on vaccines- $50

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This fee is to help defray the cost of medical, housing and re-homing the pet.

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